Key duplicating and vending machine

ABSTRACT

An unattended semi-automatic, coin operated duplicate key vending machine for use by members of the general public, the machine having a supply of key blade blanks with different cross sectional shapes in storage. The correct blank may be quickly selected by a customer by placing his key into one of a plurality of slots or selector openings, each of the slots adapted to receive a key blade of different shapes which cross section corresponds to the shape of one of the blanks in storage. Positioning the key in the correct slot thus selects a blank of appropraite cross section and automatically positions such blank for milling a duplicate profile. By placing the key to be duplicated in a second slot or key receiving opening, the profile of the key blade blank is cut with great precision to provide a faithful representation of the original key that will smoothly and without jamming operate the tumbler of the original lock. Simultaneous with the discharge of the duplicate key blade, the machine provides a durable plastic, snap, fit, irremovable head which may be easily secured to one end of the blade so as to complete the key with a conventional key head.

United States atent [191 Gartner ]'Mar. 12, 1974 KEY DUPLICATING ANDVENDING MACHINE Klaus W. Gartner, Palos Verdes Penninsula, Calif.

[73] Assignee: 5rgeiFm Rochester, NY.

[22] Filed: Feb. 10, 1972 [2]] Appl. No.: 225,071

[75] lnventor:

Primary ExaminerFrancis S. Husar [57] ABSTRACT An unattendedsemi-automatic, coin operated duplicate key vending machine for use bymembers of the general public, the machine having a supply of key bladeblanks with different cross sectional shapes in storage. The correctblank may be quickly selected by a customer by placing his key into oneof a plurality of slots or selector openings, each of the slots adaptedto receive a key blade of different shapes which cross sectioncorresponds to the shape of one of the blanks in storage. Positioningthe key in the correct slot thus selects a blank of appropraite crosssection and automatically positions such blank for milling a duplicateprofile. By placing the key to be duplicated in a second slot or keyreceiving opening, the profile of the key blade blank is cut with greatprecision to provide a faithful representation of the original key thatwill smoothly and without jamming operate the tumbler of the originallock. Simultaneous with the discharge of the duplicate key blade, themachine provides a durable plastic, snap, fit, irremovable head whichmay be easily secured to one end of the blade so as to complete the keywith a conventional key head.

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KEY DUPLICATING AND VENDING MACHINE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION ANDPRIOR ART It has long been recognized that manual duplication of keys byan operator is a very inefficient process. Where key duplication is thesole product and service of a business entity, there is quite obviouslya great loss in labor since the operator will rarely be continuouslyengaged in the duplication of keys for customers. Moreover, manual keyduplication must be performed by a trained operator since there is atleast some skill involved in operating the key duplicating machinesavailable to produce a perfect copy or duplicate. The manual process ofkey duplication also requires that the operator select a key blankhaving the correct cross section before milling the key profile.

It will be understood that the configutation and size of the crosssection of the blade of a key permits or prevents the insertion of thekey into the conventional cylinder lock and that the profile or bittedportion of the blade cooperates with the tumblers to permit the cylinderto be rotated when the tumblers are correctly positioned. There aretherefore two considerations with respect to shape or configuration of akey that determines its appropriateness for a lock and theserequirements are satisfied in two separate steps. All known keyduplicating machines provide a cutter or milling wheel which permits theprofile of the key to be duplicated from the profile of the original ormaster key. The proper cross section is obtained, not by cutting, butrather by selecting a key blank having the correct cross section. Whilethere may be millions of variations of a single lock manufacturers keys,a single manufacturer may have only one or three or five cross sectionswhich, in combination with the various profiles, provides a source ofselectionthat is extremely large without requiring the repetitive use ofa single cross section/- profile combination. For example, one of thelargest automobile manufacturers in this country which provides anignition key-operated switch for each automobile sold, preferablywithout repetitive use ofa particular cross section/profile combination,has used only five cross sections for all of the automobilesmanufactured by this concern over a substantial period of time. Thus, toduplicate a key for this manufacturer, an operator must select a keyblank with the correct cross section out of five possible cross sectionsonce the manufactuers name, indicia, or other designation on theoriginal key has been matched with a corresponding identification onprepared key blanks. Key duplication, therefore, involves the steps ofselection of a key blank with a proper cross section and subsequentlymilling the proper profile on such blank.

It will be recognized that, even if the general public could operate amanual profile milling machine, such machine would still be inadequateas a vending machine since the operation of the mill cutter would bedangerous and it would still require a suitable supply of key blanks andsome method of dispensing such blanks upon the receipt of coins. Whilekey blank dispensing devices are known, such as those shown in US. Pat.Nos. 3,265,245 and 2,148,667, the disadvantage and inadequacy of thesedevices from'a broad point of view lies in the simple failureto providea device which completes the entire key duplicating process and thussuch machines are not duplicate key vending machines in the actualsense.

A number of known attempts have been made to produce a duplicate keyvending machine which functions satisfactorily but there are no knowncommercial devices in use. Examples of prior art duplicate key vendingmachines may be found in US. Pat. Nos. 3,358,561, 3,138,999, 3,430,535,3,413,892. It is believed that the principal difficulty in thesuccessful operability of these prior art devices resides in thedifficulty in providing a supply or store or key blanks having amultiplicity of differently configured keyblank heads. This fact resultsin complexities in the apparatus for storing, transferring, positioning,aligning, and other steps which must be performed in the selection andmilling of a duplicate key.

It is also known in the prior art that keys may be 1 formed which arenot integral such as by the provision of a metallic blade which ispermanently joined to a separately formed metal or plastic head so as toprovide a key having the conventional parts. I have previously inventeda two-part key comprising a metallic blade and a snap-on plastic headwhich may be permanently affixed to the blade very simply andexpeditiously and such two-part key is the subject matter of mycopending application Ser. No. 138,675. A two-part key is exemplarilyillustrated in connection with the disclosure of the present invention.

It will be apparent from the following description that the two-part keyin itself does not satisfactorily solve the problem and disadvantages inprior art key duplicating vending machines. For example, anotherdisadvantage of the prior art devices resides in the mechanism formovement of the'key and blank during the profile milling operation-Priorart devices of both the manual and automatic types, as well as thepresent invention, utilize the well known mechanism wherein the millingwheel and a tracer or follower stylus are mounted in fixed relation toone another so as to move as a unit relative to the original key and ablank secured in a holder. In other words, the follower traces theprofile of the master key so as to simultaneously move the milling wheelrelative to the blank thereby creating a blank profile that is a perfectcopy of the profile of the master key. The milling operation involvesboth a longitudinal and transverse movement of the releasably heldmaster and blank keys relative to the follower and cutting wheel. In allof the prior art devices known, either the follower and cutter wheel aremoved longitudinally and transversely relative to the fixedly mountedmaster and blank keys, or alternatively, the follower and cutting wheelare fixed and the holder for the master and blank keys is moved bothlongitudinally and transversely. The prior art mechanism to performthese movements are complex, expensive, and commercially unsuccessful.Other disadvantages of the prior art automatic duplicate vendingmachines involve problems in the use of only mechanical orelectromechanical assemblies, alignment of the blank and key, transferof the blank from one position to subsequent positions, exposure of keyopenings on the exterior of the machine which are subject to tampering,and the like.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In light of the disadvantages of prior artdevices, it is one object of the present invention to provide anunattended duplicate key vending machine that provides a 3,116,665 and Iduplicate key blade and separate head which may be easily manuallyjoined by the customer. Another object of the present invention is toprovide a semi-automatic duplicate key vending machine in whichselection of a blank is performed by the insertion of the master keyinto an exposed key slot having a mating cross section,

withdrawal of the key and subsequent insertion into a second independentkey slot so as to form the profile of the blank. Yet another object ofthe present invention is to provide a duplicate key vending machine inwhich the transfer and milling of the blank utilizes hydraulicallyoperated assemblies. One more object of the present invention is toprovide an unattended duplicate key vending machine for use by thegeneral public which includes at least one key slot for reception of akey to be duplicated that is unexposed so as to be tamperproof untilcoins of appropriate value are deposited in the machine. The keyduplicate machine of the present invention also has the advantage of amilling assembly in which the milling wheel and profile tracer are movedlongituidnally in relation to the blank and master keys while the holderfor the blank and master keys moves transversely thereby cutting aprecise profile copy of the master key which will perform satisfactorilyin the original lock. The key duplicating machine of the presentinvention is compact in size, relatively simple in operation andmanufacture and thus reasonable in cost as would be required in avending machine service operation. Other features of the key duplicatingmachine of the present invention include the provision of an articlestoring means, such as key heads, bearing different colors, indicia ordesigns that may be selected by the customer for subsequent attachmentto the duplicate key blade when dispensed from the machine.

Generally stated, the present invention comprises a semi-automaticunattended duplicate key vending machine for use by the general publicwhich includes a housing, coin receiving means for operation of themachine in response to insertion of coins of appropriate value, at leastone key opening or slot in the exterior of the machine housing intowhich a key may be inserted by a customer for selection of a key blankof appropriate cross section for duplication, tamperproof means movablypositioned with respect to the housing to prevent access to the keyopening, and means responsive to insertion of coinage in the coinreceiving means for positioning the tamperproof means to permit accessto the key opening. The key vending machine may also include key bladeblank supply means, means for selecting and positioning the blank supplymeans so that a key blank having the same cross section as the crosssection of the key opening into which the customer inserted his key istransferred, key profile milling means including a milling cutter andtracer mounted for longitudinal movement in relation to a holder for thekey blanks and master which move transversely relative to the cutter andtracer, means for positioning and aligning the blank and master prior tomilling, a supply of key heads which may be snap fit onto duplicated keyblades produced by the machine, means for selecting a key head ofdesired color, indicia, or configuration, and means for discharging thekey blade and head from the machine to the customer. The invention mayalso include a duplicate key vending machine as described above in whichthe major subassemblies are electrically or hydraulically operated.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of anexemplary embodiment of an unattended semi-automatic duplicate keyvending machine constructed in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a front elevation view of the machine shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the plane III-III of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a detail view of a portion of the machine shown in thesectional view of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a partial front elevation view of the vending machine blankselector taken along the plane VV of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of a portion of the blank selector showingone of the blank selector switches in non-operative position;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along the plane VII- VII of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a view identical to FIG. 6 except showing a key in positionand the switch in its operative position;

FIG. 9 is a sectional view of a portion of the. key blank selectionmeans;

FIG. 10 is a sectional view taken along the plane X-X of FIG. 9;

FIG. 10A is a diagrammatic illustration of the key slot switch circuit;

FIG. 11 is a plan view, partially in section, of a portion of the keyblank supplymeans;

FIG. 12 is a plan view of the key blank transfer means;

FIG. 13 is a sectional view taken along the plane XIII- XIII of FIG. 12;

FIG. 14 shows a portion of an exemplary clamping holder of key blankmilling means of the machine in relation to the key blank transfer meansand in the operative position;

FIG. 15 is a sectional view taken along the plane XVXV of FIG. 14;

FIG. 16 is a sectional view taken along the plane XVIXVI of FIG. 14;

FIG. 17 is a sectional-viw taken along the plane XVII- -XVII of FIG. 14;

FIG. 18 is a front elevation view of a portion of the machine showingportions of the key blank milling means, the key blank transfer means,the holder for clamping selected key blanks, the milling cutter, and thedeburring means;

FIG. 19 is a sectional view taken along the plane XIXXIX of FIG. 18;

FIG. 20 is an enlarged view of a portion of the key blank milling meansclamping holder and the cutting wheel shown in the operative position;

FIG. 21 is a sectional view taken along the plane XXI-XXI;

FIG. 22 is a partial front elevation view, partly in section, of thedeburring means shown in its operative position;

FIG. 23 is a sectional view taken along the plane XXIII-XXIII of FIG.18;

FIG. 24 is a view of the ejector means shown in the operative position;

FIG. 25 is an elevation view of article storage means for key heads asused in the exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 26 is a sectional view taken along the plane XXVIXXVI of FIG. 25;and

FIG. 27 is a partial enlarged view of the operating mechanism shown inFIG. 26.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The present inventionincludes a plurality of cooperating assemblies which function to providea key duplicating vending machine whereby a customer may quickly andwith minimal expense obtain a duplicate of any selected key in hispossession. Such duplicating vending machine may be entirely unattendedand may be located at various convenient locations such as gasolineservice stations, shopping plazas, parking lots, and the like. Asrequired for vending machines in general, the machine must be capable ofmaintaining a large supply of the item vto be dispensed, be durable inconstruction and reliable in operation so as to minimize maintenance andrepair costs, and must be relatively tamperproof to prevent theinevitable attempts at unauthorized operation of the device.

While it is apparent that the particular exterior configuration of thekey vending machine of the present invention is not important to itsoverall utility, there is shown in FIG. 1 an exemplary duplicate keyvending machine which has an exterior skin of metal or plastic panels topresent a pleasing aesthetic appearance. Generally, and by particularreference to FIGS. 1 through 3, the key vending machine includes a frameindicated generally at 10, coin receiving means of conventionalconstruction indicated at 20, key blank selection means indicated at 30(see FIG. 3) and including means 50 for positioning key blank supplymeans indicated at 60, key blank transfer means indicated at 90, and keyblank milling or forming means indicated generally at 120 includingalignment means 160, means 180 for limiting the insertion of the masterkey, clamping means 200, cutting and tracing means 220, deburring means250, blank ejection means 280, and article storage means 300. Prior todescribing each of these assemblies in detail, a brief explanation ofthe general operation of the entire apparatus should facilitate anappreciation for the function performed by the various assembliescomprising the device.

Referring then to FIGS. 1 through 3, the key vending machine includes ablank selector panel which is normally unexposed to prevent tamperingtherewith .but which becomes exposed when coins of proper value aredeposited into the coin receiving means. Movement of the panel exposes aplurality of key blank selector openings each of which has a slot crosssection that corresponds to the cross section of one of the many keysthat are commercially available, for example, the ignition key of aparticular automobile manufacturer. The cross section of the customerskey can only be inserted in the proper key slot which automaticallyactuates the key blank supply means 60 so that a key having an identicalcross section and proper length is positioned for transfer. If there isno blank selector opening slot that will receive the customers key, arefund button may be provided which can be pressed by the customer forreturn of the money deposited. If a proper slot is found, an indicatorlight or other device may be provided to notify the customer that thekey may be moved to a lower opening. The customer then removes themaster key from the blank selector opening and moves the key to thelower opening where the master key is clamped into position for cuttingthe profile of the selected blank. The selected blank is transferredfrom the supply means to another portion of the key blank milling meanswhere it is also clamped to the same holder as the master key. If thereis no blank in the supply means the indicator light will not operate andthe start button (which must be pressed to commence the remainingoperations) is locked out. The coin return may then be actuated. Afterthe key is transferred to the second slot, a suitable printedinstruction on the housing informs the customer to select a key head. Ifthe selected head is exhausted, another indicator light may be providedto inform the customer that the machine supply is empty and the moneydeposited may be returned; the start button is also locked out. If ablank is present and the selected head is in supply, the start buttonmay be pressed and the clamping mechanism moves the master and blankkeys, after proper alignment, toward a milling cutter and follower whichtraces the profile of the master key and effects simultaneous andidentical cutting of the profile on the blank key blade. A deburringwheel is then moved into position to debur the duplicated blank which isthen ejected into suitable means for transferring the key blade to aposition accessible to the customer. Subsequently, the key head isejected from a key head supply means and is also transferred to alocation accessible to the customer. The customer may then insert thekey blade into the key head with an easy snap fit to complete theduplicated key.

Referring now more specifically to the apparatus as shown in FIG. 1, themachine includes a source of power including a motor 11, a hydraulicpump 12 and a hydraulic fluid accumulator or reservoir 13 which suppliesthe fluid under pressure to the piston-cylinders to actuate suchassemblies as will be herein further described. There is also shown inFIG. 1, the coin slot 14, and an independent, separate key receivingmeans 15 having a slot in the housing 16. The separate receiving meansincludes a panel 15b which is pivotable with respect to the housingtogether with the pivotable clamping means as hereinafter explained. Thehousing 16 also carries on its face a key head selector mechanismindicated generally at 17, an opening 18 for a portion of the key blankselector means, and an opening 19 through which the duplicated blank andkey head are accessible to the customer.

In conventional manner, the coin slot 14 is in communication with a coinreceiving means 20 of conventional construction forming no part of thepresent invention and which is commercially available from manufacturerssuch as The Vendo Company. The coin receiving means ia actuated whencoins of a preselected proper value are deposited into the apparatusthrough the slot 14 and permits operation of the vending machine.

, The key blank selection means 30 is immediately responsive to theinsertion of coins of proper preselected value and includes tamperproofmeans, indicated generally at 31 (see FIG. 3), including a movablemember 32 positioned adjacent the opening 18 in the housing 16. Themovable member 32 has a surface portion 33 on which a plurality of keyopenings indicated generally at 34 (see FIG. 5)-are located, and anuninterrupted or blank surface portion 33a which is normally exposedthrough the housing opening 18 when the machine is not in use. Themovable member 32, in the exemplary embodiment, comprises a rotatablymounted body supported by the frame 10 by at least one shaft 36 as seenin FIG. 3. The movable member 32 is shown in FIG. 4 in the non-operativeposition wherein the uninterrupted surface 33a is exposed through thehousing opening 18 and it will be seen that surface portion 33a may havean arcuate face so hat extremely small gaps 37 appear between the faceand the edges of the housing opening 18. In this manner, not only is theplurality of key openings 34 on face 33 unexposed through the opening18, but it also prevents tampering with the machine by precluding thejamming or lodging of foreign materials between the edge of the openingof the housing and the face of the rotatable member 32 to effectivelyprevent tampering with the apparatus.

When coins of a proper selected value are deposited into the coinreceiving means, there is provided hydraulic cylinder and piston meansindicated at 38 which rotates the rotatable member 32 into the positionshown in FIG. 3 wherein the surface portion 33 containing the keyopenings are exposed through housing opening 18.

Each of the key openings indicated generally at 34 include a key slotbody 35 having a slot cross section 35a corresponding to that of one ofcommercially available keys. Each of the key slot bodies 35 on thesurface portion 33 have a different cross section and one or groups ofsuch slots may be identified with the name of a lock manufacturer or thename of a large lock user, such as an automobile company. The customer,observing the name of the manufacturer of the key which he desires to beduplicated, attempts to try the key in one of the slots of suchmanufacturer, if multiple, until the key is properly inserted as shownin FIG. 8.

Immediately behind each key slot body 35 there is provided an electricalswitch, one of which is indicated generally at which may include a baseportion 41 secured to the movable member wall 33, for example, byclamping between two portions of the key slot body 35 or in a similarmanner. The base 41 supports a switch body 42 of insulating materialwhich carries two pairs of switches 42a .and 42b for connection to amotor, power, relay and means for positioning key blank supply means 60in a manner and for a purposeto be hereinafter explained. The switchbody also supports a lower contact element 43 and an upper movablecontact element 44 having a key engaging block 45 at its free enddisposed adjacent to the rear end of the key slot body 35 andimmediately below the slot 35a. As seen in FIG. 6, the switch 40 isnormally open when no key is present in the key slot 35a. When a key ofappropriate cross section is inserted into slot 35a, as shown in FIG. 8,the lower blade portion of the key contacts key engaging block 45 so asto depress contact 44 downwardly to make contact with contact 43 andthus close the switch 40.

The leads of the switch 40 are connected to means for positioning thekey blank supply means 60 shown best in FIGS. 9 and 10. Means 50includes a motor 51 (see FIG. 3) for rotating a shaft 52 on which ismounted a disc 53 which rotates with respect to a fixed cylindricalmember 54 supported by housing 10. Disposed in member 54 is a springloaded brush 55 connected to a relay 55a bearing against an annularconductor bar 56 mounted on the lower surface of disc 53 and which iselectrically connected to a movable spring loaded brush 57 disposed inthe outer marginal portion of disc 53. Brush 57 includes a contactelement 57a and fixed cylindrical member 54 includes a plurality ofcontact elements 58 (see FIG. 10) having leads 59 mountedcircumferentially spaced apart in a circle immediately below the path ofcontact element 57. Each of the leads 59 is attached to one of theswitches 40.

Referring now to FIG. 10A and operation of the device, insertion of thekey M closes the contacts 43, 44 so as to supply electric power to themotor 51 and relay 55a to operate the motor and rotate disc 53 and shaft52. As disc 53 rotates, brush contact element 57a will, in the course ofone revolution, engage one of the fixed contact elements 58 that isconnected through its lead 59 to its respective switch 40 to completethe ground circuit and thereby turn off motor 51. The position at whichdisc 53 stops will thus correspond to the key slot in which thecustomers key has been inserted and positions the key blank supplymeans.

The key blank supply means 60 is positioned beneath the last-describedblank selector means as seen best in FIG. 3 and includes a turretindicated at 611 comprising I a pair of circular plates 62, 63 attachedtoa shaft 64 journaled in frame 10 and rotatable with shaft 52 of theblank selector means. The plates 62, 63 support a plurality ofcartridges 65 (two of which are shown in FIG. 3) in which a plurality ofidentical key blade blanks B are positioned in vertically stackedrelation. Each of the cartridges 65 are supported by brackets 66 havinga pair of radially spaced apart openings 67 which may be inserted onto apair of radially spaced apart pins 68 in the marginal edge portion ofthe plates 62, 63, as seen best in FIG. 11, for supporting thecartridges 65 in close circumferentially spaced relation around theentire periphery of the turret. The weight of the cartridges 65maintains the cartridges in position and the cartridge may be removed bya serviceman to reload the cartridge with key blanks by simply liftingthe cartridge such that the brackets 66 disengage the pins 68 allowingthe cartridge to be removed.

It will be seen from FIG. 11 that each of the cartridges are ofgenerally rectangular cross section and include walls 69 which define alongitudinally extending channel having a length, width andconfiguration which corresponds to a particular type of key blade blankB. As seen in FIG. 13, the lower end of each cartridge is open and thereis attached to the rear wall 69 of the cartridge an L-shaped bracket 70having a lower wall portion 71 on which the key blade blanks B rest. Theshort or radial ends of the cartridge lower construction are thus openso that the lowermost key blank in each cartridge may be moved out ofthe cartridge in a radial direction asmay be seen in FIG. 12 in a mannerto be hereinafter described. From FIG. 11, it will be seen that thelonger axis of each cartridge is substantially radially aligned withrespect to the turret thus permitting the cartridges to be in closecircumferentially spaced relation. This configuration considerablyreduces the overall size of the machine particularly when compared toprior art machines wherein the blanks include integral key heads thatprecludes the close spacing between adjacent stacks of blanks therebyrequiring a larger diameter turret to accommodate an equal number ofstacks.

It will now be seen that each of the cartridge positions containing aparticular type of key blank B are in registry with one of theelectrical contact elements 58.

. When 'the apparatus is actuated through making the contacts on switch40, corresponding to a particular key blank cross section, the turretwill rotate until the brush 57 makes contact with the lead from thatparticular switch. The turret will then assume a position such that thecartridge 65 containing the key blank which corresponds to the crosssection of the key slot into which the key has been inserted ispositioned for transfer such as shown in FIG. 12.

Key blank transfer means 90 is mounted below the turret 61, as seen bestin FIG. 3, supported by the frame 10. The transfer means includes aslide assembly indicated generally at 91 mounted for reciprocal movementthrough the piston-cylinder means 92 which is supported at one endthrough ,a pivot mounting 93 and having the rod 94 extending from theother end thereof and secured to the slide assembly 91 as may also beseen in FIG. 12. Slide assembly 91 includes a fixed member 95 attachedto the frame and having a longitudinally extending track or channel 96in which is disposed a slide 97 connected through an arm 98a to thepiston rod 94 of means 92. The slide 97 is retained in the track 96through the bar 98 secured to member 95 so as to overlie thetrack 96.Above track 96, and secured to arm 98a is the key blank transfer block99 which has a V-shaped notch forward end 100 for mating engagement withthe rearward V-shaped end of the key blade blank B and for guiding itslinear movement during transfer. It will be seen from FIG. 13 that thetransfer block 99 is disposed in the horizontal plane slightly above thelower leg 71 of the L-shapedmember 70 of the blank cartridge 65 so thatthe linear movement of the slide assembly causes the block 99 to contactthe lowermost key blank B in the proper blade position cartridge 65 andthus move the key blank out of the cartridge and to thekey blank millingmeans 120.

Key blank milling means 120 includes support means for the selected keyblade blank B and the key M in serted by the customer in the slot a ofkey receiving means 15. Such support means, in the exemplary embodiment,is indicated generally at 121 (see FIGS. 2, 3, 14-l8 and The supportmeans includes a support 122 pivotally mounted on a shaft- 123 carriedby pivot blocks 124 mounted on framelO. The support 121 is moved from atransfer position (as shown in FIG. 2) to the cutting position (as seenin FIG. 18) by pistoncylinder means including the cylinder 126 pivotallysupported at its lower end to a support bracket 127 and a piston rod 128having an end bracket 129. Affixed to support 121 is a fixed arm 130(see FIG. 18) having at its outer end connecting means 131 forattachment to bracket 129 of the piston rod 128. The connecting meansincludes a housing 132 having a chamber in which there is disposed amovable block 133 therein connected to the bracket 129 through a pivotpin 134 and a spring 135 normally biasing the block 133 downwardly. Thebiasing force of spring 135 may be adjusted through a screw 136.

The upper end of support 121 comprises a generally flat platform 140having a key and blank blade supporting portion or notch 141 having avertical wall 141a and a bottom wall as seen in FIG. 12. One end of thenotch 141 is adjacent the front of the machine behind key receivingopening panel 1517 so that upon insertion of the master key M into theslot 15a, the blade rests on the notch 141. Since the notch on support121 pivots to the milling position as previously explained, the panel15b will also pivot. At the end of the platform adjacent the cartridge,the notch 141 is provided with a flat alignemnt spring 142 whichlaterally guides the key blank B into the position shown in phantomlines in FIG. 12 as it is moved by the slide transfer assembly 91. Thekey blank B is positioned longitudinally through the provision of a stopelement 143 secured to platform 140 and having a stop shoulder 144. Theplatform also carries means for sensing the proper position of the keyblank B through the transfer assembly which includes a sensing arm 146mounted on a pivot pin 146a and with its forward edge slightly forwardof the stop shoulder 144 so as to be engaged by the forward I end of thekey blank B when the key blank is properly positioned thus rotating thesensing arm 146 to the position shown in phantom lines in FIG. 12.

As seen in FIG. 14, the opposite end of the sensing arm 146 bearsagainst a pin 147 supported in a block 148 on platform 140 the other endof which engages contact element 149 of a microswitch 150. The contactelement 149 is biased so that the switch is normally open through aspring 151. When the key blank B is positioned, the pin 147 is moved tothe position shown in FIG. 14 where the contact element 149 contacts asecond contact element 152 to close the switch 150.

The key blank milling means 120 also includes means for aligning the keyand blank along a common longitudinal axis by forcing the rear edge ofthe key and blank against the vertical wall 141a of the notch 141 on thesupport. Such aligning means may include a key blank alignment finger161 and a master key alignment finger 162 mounted on a shaft 163 carriedby a pivot block 164 connected to the frame 10. Each of the alignmentfingers 161, 162 are connected at one end to brackets 165, 166 carriedby the free end of piston rods 167, 168, respectively, mounted incylinders 169, 170 pivotally mounted to frame 10. Each of the alignmentfingers are independently actuated since the width of the master key andblank will not be equal prior to milling the profile on the blank. Asseen in FIG. 2, when the support 121 is in its substantially vertical ortransfer position in which the key blank is transferred to the supportmeans 121, the alignment fingers 161, 162 are positioned substantiallyabove the holder support 121. The fingers are pivoted from the retractedposition as shown in FIG. 2 to the operative position as shown in FIGS.14 through 17 where the fingers engage the master key M and blank Brespectively forcing the edge of the key against the vertical wall 141aof the notch 141 so as to precisely align the longitudinal axes of thekey and blank.

The key blank milling means 120 also includes means for limiting thedistance to which the master key may be inserted into the machine keyreceiving slot 15a and thus positions the master key with respect to thenotch 14] of the support 122. Referring to FIGS. 12, 14 and 16, theexemplary embodiment of the means 180 includes an arm 181 having amaster key shoulder stop element 182. Arm 181 is pivoted about ashoulder machine screw 183 so as to pivot in a vertical plane relativeto the support 122. Theend of arm 181 opposite from the stop element isbifurcated into a pair of arcuate ar'rns 184, 185 defining an arcuateslot 186 for receiving a pin 187 carried by a pair of ears 188 attachedto the frame 10 (see FIG. 2). A spring 189 is attached to the oppositeend of the arm 182 and at its lower end to the support 122 so as to biasthe arm 181 in a counter-clockwise direction as viewed in FIG. 2. Whenthe support 122 is in the vertical or transfer position as shown forexample in FIG. 16, the shoulder stop 182 is positioned in the samegeneral horizontal plane as the notch 141 which receives the master keyblade when inserted into the slot 15a. In this position, the shoulder ofthe key M on the profile portion of the key will strike the stop element182 when the key is completely inserted and thus in proper position forduplicating.

It will however be apparent that if the profile portion of the masterkey extends closely adjacent the shoulder of the key, the shoulder stopelement 182 would interfere with movement of the sensor and prevent theduplicaton of the entire profile of the key. To prevent suchinterference, when the support 122 is pivoted into the blank cuttingposition, as shown in FIG. 18, the pin 187 moves out of the slot 186between the bifurcated arms 184, 185 allowing the spring 189 to pivotthe arm 181 about the screw 183 so as to move the stop element 182 fromout of the general plane of the master key M as seen best in FIG. 20.Pivotal movement of the arm 181 through the urging of the spring 189 islimited by the bracket 190. When support 121 returns to the transferposition the slot 186 engages pin 187 and guides the arm 181, againstthe bias of spring 189, to the position shown in FIG. 16.

The key milling means 120 also includes, in the exemplary embodiment,clamping means 200 comprising a pivot block 201 (see FIG. 14) secured tothe platform 140 of support 121 by a post 202 and pivotally supporting aclamping arm 203 through a pivot shaft 204. At each side of one end ofclamping arm 203 there is provided a pair of clamps 205, 206 mounted onselfaligning stub shafts 207, 208, respectively. Clamp 205 includes aprojection 209 for bearing against the upper surface of the master keyso as to clamp the master key to the bottom wall 142b of the notch 141.Similarly, clamp 206 includes a projection 210 for clamping the blank B.Each of the clamps 205, 206 also has a fulcrum projection 211, 212,respectively, which rests on platform 140 of support 122.

The opposite end of clamp. arm 203 is attached through a pivot pin 213to a bracket 214 carriedon the end ofa piston rod 215 in clampingcylinder 216 pivotally supported on a pin 217 to a portion 218 of thesupport 122. Hydraulic actuation of the cylinder 216 will thereforeextend rod 215 so as to rotate clamp arm 203 about pivot pin 204 causingthe clamps 205, 206 to rotate relative to stub shafts 207, 208 so thatthe clamp tabs 209, 210 will bear upon the master and blank clampingthem to the notch bottom wall 141b of the support 122. The entireclamping assembly is rotatable with the support 122 so as to maintainthe blank and master in clamped position during pivoting of the support122.

The key blank cutting means 120 also includes, in the exemplaryembodiment, cutting and tracing means 220 including subframe 221attached to main frame and comprising two vertically disposed members222, 223

(see FIG. 19) between which are mounted a pair of ver- ,Iically spacedguide bars 224, 225. A fixture 226 is mounted for longitudinal movementalong slides 224, 225 and is connected to a piston rod 227 reciprocallymoved by hydraulic cylinder 228. A pair of springs 229, 230 are carriedat one longitudinal end of the fixture 226 to provide a damped travel ofthe fixture in the terminal portion of its movement.

Fixture 226 is provided with a horizontally extending standard 231 (seeFIG. 18) in which is journaled a shaft 232 (see FIG. 21) in a bearing233 and carrying at one end a cutting wheel 234 secured on the shaft bya nut 235 and carrying a driven pulley 236, at the opposite end, alsosecured by a nut 237 to the shaft 232. Driven pulley 236 is connected bya belt 237a (see FIG. 18) to a drive pulley 238 carried by the fixture236. Means for rotation of the cutter wheel 234 is provided, which inthe exemplary embodiment comprises a motor 239 suitably geared to drivepulley 238. Also extending horizontally from the fixture 226 is thesensor support arm 245 which carries, as seen best in FIGS. 20 and 21, asensor, tracer, or stylus 246 supported by a mounting block 237 througha cap screw 248. The mounting block 247 is secured to arm 245 through acap screw 249 and there are provided adjusting screws 249a, 249b carriedby a portion 249C of arm 245 for adjusting the position of the stylus246 relative to the cutting wheel 234 which is also fixedly mounted tothe fixture 226.

The duplicate key vending machine may also include deburring means 250for removing the rough edges of the milled key blank so that theduplicated key may be easily inserted into the lock mechanism. In theexemplary embodiment, such deburring means includes a longitudinallyslidable fixture 251 mounted on horizontal slides 252, 253 andpositioned generally below the key milling fixture 226. The slides 252,253 are supported by the subframe member 222, 223. The deburringfixture251 is connected to a piston rod 254 reciprocally operated by ahydraulic cylinder 255 and suitable control mechanism. The fixture 251includes a pair of vertical tracks 256, 257 (see FIG. 23) in which aredisposed a pair of slides 258, 259 connected to a carriage 260includinga vertically disposed support member 261 on the outer end ofwhich there is carried a shaft 262 mounted in a bearing 263 and having adriven pulley 264 on one end and a deburring wheel 265 on the oppositeend. The deburring wheel 265 may comprise a conventional cylindricalsteel brush. Pulley 264 is driven by a belt 266 (see FIG. 19) connectedto a drive pulley 267 mounted on the output shaft of an electric motor268 carried by the carriage 260. The carriage 260 is moved upwardly soas to position the deburring wheel in its operative position adjacentthe duplicated blank DB through a lifting cylinder 269 and piston rod270 attached to the lower end of the carriage 260 and to frame 10.

The duplicate key vending machine also includes ejection means 280 forejecting the duplicated blank key blade DB from the clamping means 200and for transferring the duplicate DB to the opening 19 in the frontface of the housing 16 of the machine where the blade is accessible tothe customer. The ejection means may be best seen in FIGS. 14, 17, 22and 24. The ejection means, in the exemplary embodiment, comprises anejection pin 281 normally biased into the inoperative position by aspring 282 and which is slidably mounted in the upper end of the support121 longitudinally adjacent the key blank B when in the milling positionas shown in FIG. 14. The pin 281 includes a projection 283 for contactwith the blank B at one end and a head 284 in engagement with a camelement 285 pivotally mounted through a pivot pin 286 to a block 287supported at the upper end of support 121. The cam element 285 is alsoconnected to a vertically disposed lever 288 connected to the camelement through a pin 289 and connected at its opposite end to thearmature 290 of a solenoid 291 fixedly mounted on the support 121.

The ejector pin 281, during the sequence of operations previouslydescribed, is normally in the position shown in FIG. 17 wherein theprojection 283 is not in contact with the inner edge of the key blank Band upon completion of duplication of the customers key, the clampingmeans is actuated so as to release the key blank whereupon solenoid 291is actuated so as to move pin 281 striking blank B and causing it tofall into a chute 292 carried by the deburring means frame 260. Thechute terminates in an end 293 (see FIG. 18) which is positioned above atray (not shown) that is connected to the opening 19 in the apparatus.

The present invention also includes article storage means 300 for anunattended vending machine and is exemplarily illustrated in connectionwith the key vending machine of the present invention as means forstoring a plurality of key heads. The article storage means 300 isadapted to store a plurality of generally rectangular molded plastic keyheads which are dispensed from the vending machine with each duplicatedkey blade and which may be secured to the key blade with a snap fit tocomplete the duplicated key.

Means 300 includes a rectangular frame indicated generally at 301 havinga plurality of elongated channels 302 disposed in the vertical positionand adapted to receive articles in vertically stacked relation. The

.frame 301, in the exemplary embodiment, is attached to an L-shapedbracket 303 for a member 304 to the housing l0.-The article storagemeans 300 as shown has provision for a plurality of generallyrectangular key heads H as seen in FIGS. 26 and 27. Each of theelongated channels 302 has a slot 305 in the front face thereof so as tovisually indicate the number of key heads which remain in each elongatedchannel so as to facilitate supply servicing of the apparatus.Immediately below rectangular frame 301 there is provided a track 306supported at opposite ends by the frame and having a peaked upper slidesurface 307. Secured to the lower end of frame 301 is a.slide block 308of generally rectangular longitudinally extending configuration andhaving an inverted V-shaped notch on its lower surface for matingsliding engagement with the slide surface 307 of track 306.

As seen in FIG. 25, at one end of the rectangular frame 301 there isprovided a stop pin 309 and at the opposite end the slide block 308 andtrack 306 are provided with openings, in registry when the frame ispositioned against the hold pin so that an L-shaped lock pin 310 may fixthe rectangular frame 301 relative to the track 306. When it is desiredto refill or resupply the elongated channels 302, the pin 310 may beeasily removed and the entire rectangular frame may be slid along thetrack 306 to provide easy and convenient accessibility to the upper endsof each of the elongated channels where the articles are deposited toresupply the apparatus.

The article storage means also includes means 315 for ejecting anarticle from its respective elongated channel 302 into a suitablydisposed means for carrying the ejected article to its intendeddestination. In the exemplary embodiment of the present inventions, suchmeans 315 includes a pivot shaft 316 mounted between a pair of pillowblocks 317 and immediately below the rectangular frame 301. At spacedapart locations along the pivot shaft 316 and disposed immediately beloweach of the respective elongated article channels 302, there is providedejection members 318 which includes a first horizontal arm portion 319one end of which is pivotally supported on the shaft 316 and theopposite end of which is attached to an actuating arm 320. Intermediatethe ends of the arm portion 319, the member 318 includes a vertical armportion 321 and a bent arm portion terminating in a finger 322. As seenin FIG. 26, the finger 322 when arm portion 319 is in the horizontalposition resting on stop element 323 is positioned below the edge of therectangular frame 301 and to one side thereof adjacent one of thearticles H in one of the elongated channels. Each of the arms 318 aresimilarly disposed beneath one of the elongated channels and are spacedfrom one another by spacers 324 as seen in FIG. 25. The actuating arm320 is connected at its upper end to a second actuating arm 325 which inturn is pivotally connected to the rod 326 of a solenoid 327 mounted ona bracket 328.connected to the housing frame 10. As may be seen in FIG.27, when a customer has selected a particular article to be ejected fromthe apparatus and has pressed a corresponding button or similarselection device the solenoid 327 is actuated so as to move theactuating member 320 upwardly causing the arm 318 to pivot about shaft316 moving finger 322 to the left (as seen in FIG. 27) forcing one ofthe articles H out of its respective elongated channel. Such article maybe delivered to an opening, such as the opening 19. in the housing 16 ofthe apparatus of the present invention through a suitable articleconveying chute 329.

Having now fully described all of the structure of the present inventionand to the extent that its operation has not been fully described, onesequence of operation will hereinafter be described. As previouslynoted, the vending machine is normally installed in some location atwhich it is completely unattended and thus must be safe against anypossible tampering or attempt to obtain a duplicate key without properpayment. Accordingly, when in the non-operating condition, the apparatusappears substantially as shown in FIG. 1 wherein the key selection meansblank surface portion 33a is exposed to the opening 18 in the skin ofthe machine 16. All of the key openings 34 are thus unexposed and thekey slots 35a cannot be clogged or filled with foreign objects whichwould prevent the later insertion of a key of proper cross section.Immediately below the unexposed blank surface portion 33a of the keyblank selection means there is provided a key head style and- /or colorselector device 17 which may be manually rotated so as to choose aparticular style and color of key head. The selector mechanism 17 isoperated, in accordance with printed instructions, and may be moved soas to choose a key head as desired by the customer. If the key headselected is not in supply, an indicator light is activated to inform thecustomer that such head is not available and permitting the customer torefund his money. Obviously, various types of selection means arecommercially available and useable in the device of the presentinvention.

When coins of appropriate preselected value have been inserted by thecustomer through the coin slot 14 the coin receiving means permits thesequence of operation in the key duplicating process to commence. Suchoperation of course includes the activation of the motor 11 so as toturn on pump 12 to provide the source of hydraulic pressure required foractuation of the various assemblies and subassemblies of the apparatusConcurrently, hydraulic pressure is supplied to the cylinder and pistonmeans 38 which rotates the rotatable member 32 into the position shownin FIG. 3 where the surface portion 33 is exposed to the opening 18providing access to the plurality of key slots 35a.

Generally concurrently with the movement of the key blank selectorrotatable member 32 electrical power is supplied to the motor 51 of themeans 50 for positioning the key blank supply means 60 through one Ofthe plurality of switches connected to each of the key openings 35a.Since each of the key openings 35a are identified in a general manner bythe name of the manufacturer of a lock or other product utilizing alock, the customer may quickly identify a key blank slot correspondingto the key which he wishes to duplicate or at least a group of key blankopenings which have the same manufacturers name as on the key to becopied. The customer, through suitable instruction provided on theexterior of the apparatus, will then proceed to place his key into thatkey blank opening which he believes corresponds to his particular key.If the customer is incorrect, the key blank selection means will not berendered operative since the cross section of the customers key will notcorrespond to the key slot chosen and thus the key cannot be insertedinto such opening. This would indicate to the customer that another keyopening must be tried and he will continue to try such openings untilthe cross section of the blade portion of the customers key is such thatit will be accommodated by the cross section of the correct slot 35a.Thus, the first process in selecting an appropriate key blank is carriedout by the matching of a customers key with one of a plurality of keyblank openings, each of which have different cross sections and only oneof which, if any, will correspond to the cross section of the customerskey. If no key opening corre sponds, the customer may obtain a refund ofhis coins through a conventional coin-return mechanism.

When the key M has been inserted into the proper key blank slot 35a, theblade of the key will engage the member on the key contact 44 so as tomake contact for the switch 40 which effects operation of the motor 51causing the disc 53 to rotate together with the shaft 52 which in turnrotates the cylindrical turret 61 carrying the key blank bladecartridges 65. The other pair of leads of the switch 40 are connectedthrough the disc 53 such that when the brush member 57 thereon engages acontact element 58 to which the other lead of the pair is connected, themotor 51 will be immediately shut off and thus the turret 61 will bepositioned. The position assumed by the turret 61 corresponds to thepositioning of a cartridge 65 adjacent key blank transfer means and suchcartridge has been preselected to carry a key blank blade having a crosssection which corresponds to that cross section of the key slotpositioned adjacent the switch which stops the motor when the correctcartridge is in the transfer position.

When the blank cartridge is positioned, a valve for actuating thecylinder 92 is activated which, through piston rod 94, moves the slideassembly 91 so that key blank transfer block 99 will move a key blankblade B out of the cartridge 65 and onto key blade supporting portion141 of the key blank milling means 120, as seen in FIG. 12, in phantomlines. The key blank blade B is guided through the flat alignment spring1412 and is moved by the slide assembly 91 until the blade contacts stopshoulder 144, at which time it trips sensing arm 146 which in turn tripsmicroswitch 150 thus indicating that the blank blade B is in properposition for subsequent milling. Microswitch 150 is also connected to anindicator light on the front panel which notified the customer to movethe key to the second key receiving opening 15. If the blank supply isexhausted, the light will not be activated and the coins may bereturned.

At this point in the sequence of operation, suitable means may beprovided in conventional manner for actuating the piston cylinder means38 to move the rotatable member 32 back into the original position. Thesecond key forming operation is commenced when the customer takes themaster key and inserts it into the second key receiving opening 15 whichhas no cross section and thus may accommodate any of the keys which arereceivable in one of the key blank selector openings 34.

Responsive to a start button pressed by the customer, the means forlongitudinally aligning the key and blank is actuated through a suitablevalve which supplies hydraulic pressure to cylinder moving piston rod168 and pivoting alignment fingers 161 and 162 which simultaneouslyaligns the blank B and the blade of the master key M. When the fingers161, 162 are moved to their limit position, a suitably positionedmicroswitch is tripped so as to actuate a valve providing hydraulicpressure to the clamping cylinder 216 moving the piston 215- so as tomove clamping arm 203 rotating the pair of clamps 205, 206 so that theprojections 209, 210 bear upon the upper surface of the blank and masterkey blades, respectively, thereby fixedly but releasably clamping theblades in position for milling. The alignment fingers are then moved tothe retracted position.

When the blank and master blades are clamped into position, thehydraulic valve is actuated through suitable means to supply hydraulicfluid to cylinder 126 moving piston rod 128 so as to pivot support 122toward the milling cutter and sensor in the position shown in FIG. 18.It should be noted that when support 122 is pivoted, the master keylimit means is actuated such that the arm 181 is pivoted under theinfluence of spring 189 so that the stop element 182 is rotated out ofthe plane of the master key thereby exposing the entire bitted orprofile portion of the master key such that the entire profile up to theshoulder may be traced by sensor 246. It will also be appreciated thatmovement of piston rod 128 which rotates support 122 will compress thespring 135 in housing 132 attached to arm 130 so as to bias this springthereby urging the profile of the master key into continuous biasedengagement with the sensor 246 and also biasing the forward edge of theblade blank B into contact with the cutting wheel 234 When support 122is rotated such that the blank and master key blades are in contact withthe milling wheel and sensor the motor 239 is actuated to begin rotationof the milling wheel 234 and a valve is actuated so as to pressurizecylinder 228 moving fixture 226 of the cutting and tracing assemblylongitudinally with respect to the longitudinally fixed blank and masterwhereby the profile on the master key is traced with the

1. An unattended semi-automatic key duplicating and vending machine foruse by the general public to duplicate a selected key including ahousing, key blank supply means and means for milling a duplicate keyfrom a key blank that is a duplicate of the selected key, said machinecomprising: key blank selector means including at least one key blankselector opening in said housing in which the customer''s selected keymay be inserted and means actuated by the insertion of said key in saidselector opening for operating said key blank supply means to position akey blank of corresponding cross-section to said inserted key at a keyblank transfer position within said machine; means for transferring saidblank within said machine from said key blank transfer position to saidmeans for milling for subsequent milling; an independent, separate keyreceiving means in which the customer''s selected key may besubsequently inserted; and means for supporting and clamping said keywhen, inserted in said separate key receiving means, together with theblank, when transferred by said means for transferring, for milling ofthe blank by said milling means to produce a duplicate key.
 2. The keyvending machine of claim 1 in which the separate key receiving means andsaid support and clamping means are movable relative to the housing,together with the key inserted during said subsequent milling.
 3. Thekey vending machine of claim 1 comprising: tamper-proof means includingmeans for movably mounting said key blank selector means relative tosaid housing to provide for movement of said key blank selector openingto a position within said housing which is not accessible from theoutside of said housing to prevent access to said key blank selectoropening, said means for movably mounting said key blank selector meansbeing operable upon the insertion of coins of preselected value in acoin-receiving means associated with said machine to automatically placesaid key blank selector opening in a position in which it is accessiblefrom outside of said housing.
 4. The key vending machine of claim 1comprising: ejecting means for ejecting said blank after said millingfrom said means for milling to a key delivery location of said machine,said blank comprising a key blade portion only; and supply means for keyheads which are engageable with said key blanks and means for deliveringa selected head to said delivery location whereby upon delivery of saidduplicated key blank and said key head the customer may interengage thehead and the blank to provide a complete duplicate key.
 5. The keyvending machine of claim 1 wherein said key blank supply mounting meansincludes a generally cylindrical turret supporting a plurality ofreleasably mounted cartridges in close circumferentially spacedrelation.
 6. The key vending machine of claim 5 wherein each of saidcartridges are vertically elongated for storing a plurality of keyblanks in stackeD relation and each cartridge has a generallyrectangular cross-section with its longer axis aligned radially withrespect to said turret.
 7. A key duplicating and vending machine,including a frame, a supply of key blanks and key blank milling means,for use by the general public to permit the duplication of a selectedcustomer key comprising: key blank selection means for selecting a keyblank to be milled from said supply of key blanks, and positioning it ata key blank transfer position within said machine; means fortransferring said blank from said supply means at said transfer positionto said key blank milling means; and support means associated with saidkey blank milling means for supporting said blank transferred by saidmeans for transferring and on which is mounted means for clamping saidkey blank and said key when inserted thereon by the customer in fixedrelation; a milling cutter including means for operation thereof; and akey profile tracing means fixedly mounted with respect to the millingcutter on a fixture, said fixture being longitudinally movable relativeto the key and blank support and said key and blank support beingtransversely movable with respect to the milling cutter and tracerfixture.
 8. The duplicate key vending machine of claim 7 wherein saidkey and blank support means is pivotally mounted on said frame formovement with respect to said milling cutter and tracer fixture.
 9. Theduplicate key vending machine of claim 8 wherein said support during thecutting operation is pivoted to a position wherein the profile of thekey and blank engage the tracer and milling cutter.
 10. The duplicatekey vending machine of claim 9 wherein said pivotally mounted supportmeans and the key and blank clamped thereon are yieldably urged intocontinuous engagement with said milling cutter and tracer to permitprecise copying of the key profile on the blank.
 11. The duplicate keyvending machine of claim 7 additionally including means forlongitudinally aligning said key and blank on said support means aftertransfer of said blank from said supply means to said support means. 12.The duplicate key vending machine of claim 11 wherein said aligningmeans comprises a pair of pivotally mounted fingers selectively movableinto engagement with the profile edge of the key and blank prior toclamping and out of engagement with said faces prior to transversemovement of said support means.
 13. The duplicate key vending machine ofclaim 12 wherein said fingers are hydraulically urged into engagementwith the profile edge of the key and blank.
 14. The duplicate keyvending machine of claim 7 additionally including means for receiving akey and being movable with said key and blank holder, the blade of saidkey when received in said means being positioned with respect to saidsupport means for clamping.
 15. The duplicate key vending machine ofclaim 14 additionally including means for limiting longitudinal movementof the key blade relative to the support means by selective engagementwith the key shoulder.
 16. The duplicate key vending machine of claim 15wherein said means for limiting longitudinal movement of key bladeincludes an arm pivotally mounted on said support means and including astop element, the stop element being positioned in the plane of the keywhen inserted and out of the plane when the support means istransversely moved.
 17. The duplicate key vending machine of claim 7wherein said fixture is longitudinally moved by a hydraulically operatedcylinder and piston means.
 18. An unattended duplicate key vendingmachine including a housing, and key blank milling means for duplicatinga key to be inserted in said machine by a customer, comprising: compactsupply means for a plurality of key blade blanks of differentcross-section; means for selecting a key blade blank corresponding to acustomer''s key; means for transferring said blade blank from saidsupply means to said key blAnk milling means; storage means for aplurality of key heads adapted to snap fit on a duplicated key blade;and means for ejecting said key blade blank after milling and forejecting a selected key head to said customer whereby said customer maymanually assemble said head and blade blank into a completed key. 19.The duplicate key vending machine of claim 18 wherein said compact keyblade blank supply means comprises a rotatably mounted turret and aplurality of key blade blank cartridges releasably mounted around theperiphery of said turret, each magazine holding a plurality of key bladeblanks of identical cross section in stacked vertical relation.
 20. Theduplicate key vending machine of claim 19 wherein each of said key blankblade cartridges are elongated and have a generally rectangular crosssection, the lower end of each cartridge having openings in opposedwalls through which a key blade blank may pass and wherein said meanstransferring the blade blank from the supply means to the key blankmilling means includes a transfer block mounted for movement into one ofsaid openings so as to force the lowermost key blade blank out of theopposite opening thereby transferring the blade blank from the supplymeans to the key blank milling means.
 21. The duplicate key blankvending machine of claim 20 wherein said key block has a forward edgefor engagement with the key blade blank that includes a V-shaped notchfor mating engagement with the V-shaped end of the key blank for guidingthe blank during movement.
 22. The duplicate key vending machine ofclaim 21 comprising: a support associated with said key blank millingmeans and clamping means mounted on said support for releasably securinga customer''s key and a transferred key blade blank clamped to thesupport during milling of the key blade blank profile.
 23. The duplicatekey vending machine of claim 22 wherein said means for transferring saidkey blade blank includes means for laterally guiding the blank duringmovement from the supply means to the support.
 24. The duplicate keyvending machine of claim 18 wherein said storage means comprises agenerally rectangular frame including a plurality of adjacent elongatedchannels for receiving and holding a plurality of key heads in verticalstacked relation, each channel holding key heads different than heads inother channels, and additionally including means for selection of a keyhead from one of said channels by a customer.
 25. A key duplicating andvending machine having a supply of key blanks and key blank millingmeans for duplicating a key to be inserted in said machine by acustomer, comprising: key blank selection means, including at least onekey receiving slot, for selecting an appropriate key blank from saidsupply of key blanks in response to a customer inserting his key in saidfirst key receiving slot; key blank transfer means for automaticallytransferring said key blank within said machine from said supply of keyblanks to said key blank milling means; a second key receiving openingin said machine to receive said customer''s key after withdrawal of saidkey from said key receiving slot; key blank and key receiving andsupport means associated with said key blank milling means for receivingand supporting said key blank transferred from said supply and said keyinserted through said opening; and means for clamping said key blank andkey on said support when received thereon, preparatory to milling ofsaid blank.
 26. The key duplicating and vending machine of claim 25comprising: means for aligning said key and blank along a longitudinalaxis on said support means prior to clamping thereon by said clampingmeans.
 27. The key duplicating and vending machine of claim 25comprising: means for limiting the distance said key may be insertedthrough said opening relative to said key receiving and support means tofacilitate pre-positioning of said key prior to clamping thereof by saidrespective clamping means.
 28. In a key duplicating and vending machinehaving a key profile tracing means for tracing a key profile andassociated milling means for milling a duplicate profile in a key blank,the improvement comprising the provision of: first means for mountingsaid profile tracing means and milling means in fixed relative positionsand for concurrent longitudinal movement relative to the longitudinalaxis of a key and key blank to be operated upon; second means forsupporting and clamping a key blank and a key in fixed relativepositions with their longitudinal axes generally parallel to thedirection of longitudinal movement of said means for mounting saidtracing and milling means and for concurrent movement transversely ofthe longitudinal direction of movement of said tracing and millingmeans; and means for operating said first means for mounting in saidlongitudinal direction and said second means transversely thereof toconcurrently move said key blank and key transversely of said tracer andmilling means as said tracer and milling means are moved longitudinallythereof to thereby mill a profile in said key blank which is a duplicateof that of said key.
 29. In the key duplicating and vending machine ofclaim 28, the additional provision of: means for automaticallytransferring a selected key blank from a supply thereof to said secondmeans in response to a customer''s inserting his key to be duplicated ina first key blank selector slot; and a separate key receiving openingthrough which said key may be inserted to place said key to beduplicated on said second means.